


From The Same Cloth

by chikauedas



Category: Persona 3, Persona 4
Genre: A meeting of minds, Fluff and Humor, If Vincent can show up in P3 well erica can get a new nicer job, M/M, Post-Game(s), because why not, raidou kuzonoha gets mentioned, sewing alliance, yu gives great advice and yosuke does not
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-04
Updated: 2019-03-04
Packaged: 2019-10-22 09:46:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 13,616
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17660441
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chikauedas/pseuds/chikauedas
Summary: A story about Kanji and Bebe - set in current day, chronicling how two these very different but similar characters meet, the ensuing wacky shenanigans. These will mainly be snippets of life and fluffy vignettes with no major driving plot other than these two doofs and their journey getting closer(Featuring appearances and updates from the IT, and other persona characters)





	1. First Blush

“No, no - let him through, he’s with me!” the singsong voice rang out like a bell through the heavy metal doors to the soundstage.

The two security guards eyed one another suspiciously, blocking his entry like two very judgemental refrigerators.

“Well,” the first tutted, in a voice that sounded like a cement mixer “if Miss Risette says so.”

“But we’ll be keeping an eye on you, pal.” The other one made a cartoonish motion with his fingers as they both moved aside just barely enough to let him through “so no funny business.” Kanji grunted, avoiding eye contact - hopefully giving off the impression of a sort of tough-guy irritation instead of genuine hurt. He’d tried his hardest to look presentable, dammit - it wasn’t his fault he had resting delinquent face. He’d been working hard on giving off less intimidating vibes since… what, 2012? and almost seven years on, the fruits of his labour apparently were minimal to the general population.

  
Pushing through the heavy metal doors, he was momentarily blinded by the brightness - it was like walking into a different world from the industrial backlot. A shiny world with white floors, white walls, white furniture - and lots and lots of lights. His friend - Risette, idol extraordinaire - was standing amidst various props while several figures buzzed busily around her, getting everything set up for the big photoshoot.  
“Hey, there he is!” Rise smiled - trying to wave without inadvertently getting jabbed with 100 pins while her stylist made adjustments “I hope you didn’t have too much trouble getting in.”

“This is my friend Kanji,” she smiled “The one I told you about” A flash of an expression Kanji couldn’t quite place passed over her face for a split second as a blond boy broke away from the buzz. His eyes widened momentarily as he turned to look at the new arrival, and he smiled warmly.  
  
“Rise-chan speaks very highly of you,” he bowed his head deferentially. He was foreign, that was obvious from his accent (his Japanese had improved greatly since he first visited, but the seams were still visible) if the blonde hair and big blue eyes didn’t tip you off - _he’s kinda weird-looking, but in a pretty way. Like a really fancy duck_ _or something_ Kanji thought, staring despite himself. He hadn’t met many foreigners - _Wait, does Teddie count?…does Aigis? Probably not, right? Do I know any regular human foreign people?_ Kanji was getting lost deep in thought _Ya know, he kinda looks like that Ryo guy from that Devilman Crybaby thing. Maybe he isn’t a human! No, don’t be stupid. C’mon, just be cool._  

“You are the one who created the _kawaii_ little animal dolls, yes?” the blond boy asked, pulling Kanji out of his spiraling thoughts. He seemed to be studying Kanji intently, his head tilted to one side “You are somewhat different to how I expected.”  
Kanji furrowed his brow - _here we go again._  
“I expected someone with much smaller hands for the level of fine detail work,” he laughed “this makes your craftsmanship all the more impressive!”  
“Oh uh, thanks” Kanji felt a prickly heat rush to his entire face “I just like little cute things I guess.”  
“This is the designer,” Rise cheerfully interjected.  
“Oh, you’re Baby?”  
“People here usually call me _Bebe_ ,” he let out a small giggle that made Kanji’s stomach feel weird “but you can call me Baby if you like - they mean the same anyway”  
“Ah sorry - I’ll just stick with Bebe for now,” Kanji blushed furiously. He’d already made an ass out of himself within the first five minutes of meeting this person. Great.  
  
“He needs to get some supplies but doesn’t know the names of everything in Japanese - so I thought you could help him once we’re done for the day,” she grinned “I think it’ll be a match made in heaven - you two have a lot in common!” Kanji didn’t see how a tiny, birdlike, foreign designer and himself were all that alike, but the machinations of Rise’s mind were a mystery to him - she was always making connections he couldn’t follow at all.  
  
“And he’s strong,” she addressed this to Bebe “so just make him carry whatever you want.”  
“Hey!” Kanji huffed  - so this was Rise’s game. Drag him all the way here to be some sorta pack mule?  
“Oh I think I will only need his expertise,” the slightest hint of pink crept into Bebe’s pale face “I am not here to bother Tatsumi-sama.”  
“Uh you can just call me Kanji,” he’d never been called anything so respectful in his life. It was weird.  
  
“Alright - _Kanji-sama_ ”

 

* * *

   
Later  
  
  
They strolled though the streets of Shibuya, arms laden down with bags of various fabrics and supplies.  
  
“And the name for this one?”  
“Bias binding.”  
“ _Bias binding_.” Bebe sighed and shook his head “I am never going to remember all of this…”  
“Well, if you need any help I could go shopping with you again,” Kanji offered “It’s no trouble.”  
He really liked visiting the big city fabric stores and browsing everything, and it was kinda nice to have another guy there who was interested in the same stuff. Made him feel less weird, and Bebe was so enthusiastic about everything - he didn’t seem to mind people staring at all. It was fun.  
  
“Arigatou ~ thank you Kanji-sama,” Bebe looked up shyly from under his those thick eyelashes “For everything. Say - before we drop all this off, may I buy you a drink to say thank you? There is a small place I like to go to near here.”  
“Might be good to take a rest,” Kanji agreed.  
  
  
Though the bar looked like nothing from the outside, the inside was plush and welcoming, but homey too - lots of red, with low moody lighting and a touch of sparkle here and there.  
“Bonsoir, Madame Lala!” Bebe called out in a singsong voice, kissing the hand of the middle-aged woman with bright purple hair behind the bar “I hope you are doing well this evening.”  
“Well if it isn’t my little _petit filous_ ,” the woman beamed maternally “and who might this be?”  
Kanji was not quite expecting the rough Okinawa accent of a a 10-pack-a-day chainsmoker to come out of this grandma, but tried to hide his surprise.  
“This is Kanji - he has been helping me find sewing supplies today.”  
“Well, isn’t that nice of him,” she batted her eyelashes, looking him up and down “What’ll it be handsome? This one’s on the house - if you’re helping out this sweetiepie here, then you’re good people”  
“What kind of drink do you like, _mon ami_?”  
“Something sweet?” Kanji squeaked out, flustered.  
“I know just the thing,” Lala nodded wisely “And the usual for you, darling?”  
“Sugoi, Madame Lala,” the blond boy smiled.  
“ _Bon Chance, Petit Filous_ ,” she replied with a wink that made Bebe laugh and shake his head - Kanji was totally lost.  
  
Bebe guided them to a booth and sat on one of the plush red benches, gesturing for Kanji to do the same.  
“So,” Bebe’s eyes shone brightly “Tell me about yourself.”  
“Ah there ain’t much to tell,” he deflected “I’m from a small town, used to be a punk but now I’m tryna do right. - You been to Japan before? You’re pretty good with the language”  
“I came on an exchange program in high school - and I guess you could say I fell in love.”  
“with who?”  
“I meant with the country, but” he laughed before staring at his napkin wistfully, folding it smaller and smaller “I suppose there was a who as well. My dear friend - we promised to stay in touch but he…  
  
...he died.”  
  
“Oh Jeez,” Kanji scrambled to say something “I’m sorry.”  
“It’s fine,” he sighed “You could not have known, and it was so long ago. I am being silly…”  
He stared off into the middle distance, watching a rogue dust particle twirl in the light.  
“If nothing else, it thought me I should treasure people while they are here, because you don’t know when is the last time you will see them, no?”  
“Yeah” Kanji nodded vigorously. That sure seemed deep.  
  
“But enough of this melancholy talk,” Bebe perked up as their drinks arrived over. A woman with short hair and bangs handed Bebe a small glass of umeshu with ice, and Kanji a very colourful looking concoction.  
Bebe swirled his drink “How do you know Risette?”  
“We solved a murder together when we were fifteen.” It just sort of came out of his mouth before he realised how insane that sounded.  
“Wow,” the blond boy’s eyes went so wide they were like perfect circles.  
It took a while for his brain to process the whole murder thing, then that this brick wall of a man was the same age as the baby-faced Risette - that made him about two years younger than Bebe, who often still got carded going into PG-13 movies.  
  
“That sounds very… exciting!”  
  
Kanji shrugged awkwardly as he tried to figure out whether he was supposed to drink through the tiny umbrella “How about you?  
How did you meet Rise?”  
“Well I was working on redesigning the reunion tour outfits for Kanamin Kitchen,”  
“Bout time - their old ones were a freakin’ trainwreck”  
“I know right?” Bebe shook his head “those prints!”  
“Those fits”  
“Those uh - how do you call them,” Bebe mimed the shape of something puffing out.  
“Oh, the pantaloon things?” Kanji laughed “I think I repressed the memory of those… man, they were ugly”  
  
“Well, I was redesigning _those_ outfits,” Bebe continued “And when Risette saw the finished pieces, her management contacted me - she felt that if I could make something good out of the fashion disasters, then she wanted to see what I could do for her.”  
“That is so cool,” Kanji’s eyes lit up “Man, I would love to see some of your sketches for that stuff.”  
“Oh, well you are welcome to come back to my flat and I can show you some time,” he smiled shyly.  
“Awesome,” Kanji enthused in the world’s most oblivious tone.  
Bebe couldn’t tell if his shopping companion was sending out extremely mixed messages or if it was some sort of language barrier issue.  
From what Risette had told him...  
  
“So did people make fun of you in France for being into all this,” Kanji gestured to the bags of sewing supplies around him - he had finally foregone trying to figure out which decoration was the straw and was taking big inelegant sips of his cocktail “stuff?”  
“Not particularly, no,” Bebe mused “There were so many things they could laugh at me over, they just could not find the time to do all of them. How I dressed, the type of cakes I liked, how easily I would cry. They used to laugh even about how I loved old samurai films. They said I had, how do you say this - a crush on Mifune… which was true but I didn’t like how they said it!” He laughed his little musical laugh again. It always made Kanji’s stomach feel funny, but he didn’t know why.  
  
“They were making fun of you for having a crush on a dude, huh?”  
“I mean, they also laughed at me for the same with Lady Eboshi from _Princess Mononoke_ but I think that was because she is a cartoon.”  
“Kids used to make fun of me all the time for sewing,” Kanji said, looking at his drink quizzically - he seemed to have lost the umbrella “Especially the girls.”  
“Really? The girls in school quite liked me - the worst they would do is want to dress me up like a toy,” Bebe smiled fondly “The boys however - most of them did not like me at all. They called me all sorts of names, _Couille, PD_ … it’s probably best if I don’t translate them.”  
“The girls at my school would just call me a fag,” Kanji replied.  
“Creative.” Bebe mused.  
  
Kanji laughed - Bebe took a sip from his drink and smiled “It’s a pity they didn’t take the time to get to know you,” he said “Charming, talented, handsome, strong opinions on which Hamtaro character is best -”  
“It’s Bijou, this shouldn’t even be a question”  
“ - knows what bias binding is - what is not to like?”  
Kanji smiled and nodded - hearing the compliments but not really believing them.  
  
“Uh Bebe,” He furrowed his brow, looking down at the floor then back up at his companion “are you gay?”A spray of umeshu went right into Kanji’s face as Bebe momentarily choked on his drink.  
  
“Sumimasen?” he spluttered “I… did I misunderstand you?”  
“Uh like,” Kanji struggled to find words to explain himself “do you like guys?”  
  
Bebe looked at Kanji like he’d just grown an extra head, before his eyes took on a steely tone and he replied somewhat haughtily “I like a lot of different types of people. In France we say _pansexuel_ \- I don’t know if they have this word here. It means across all the um… various genres of people. What matters most is who the other person is, not what they are.”  
“Huh,” Kanji seemed to find that a revelation “You can be that?”  
“ _ **I can**_ ,” Bebe snapped “Do you have a problem with that?”  
“Wha? That’s **awesome**!” Kanji said - elated “Pansexual - how do you spell that?"  
  
He started making an attempt with sharpie in katakana on his hand.“Pansexual - Hi I’m Kanji and I’m pansexual,” he acted out a little scene of meeting someone “Huh, you French guys have a word for everything. _All different kinds of people_ \- Yosuke told me I had to choose one,” he sighed “And it was real hard to choose…”  
Bebe blinked - dumbfounded. The conversation had taken some very sharp turns and done a 180 on him. Kanji, thrilled with his new information, looked at him like an excitable puppy dog and the French boy’s heart melted a little.  
  
“So you are saying… that you are also like me,” he asked, trying to keep up with this runaway train of thought.  
“Yeah! I guess I am,” Kanji beamed - he really had such a sweet smile, Bebe thought to himself. It was very innocent, childish almost.  
“You know so much stuff Bebe - you’re a pretty cool guy.”  
Bebe fished the sunken umbrella out of Kanji’s drink and delicately folded into a napkin before the poor boy choked on it. He smiled gently - maybe this was Risette’s idea all along, helping her friend find his feet.  
  
“Well, you can always talk to me if you have any questions, Kanji-sama.”  
  
He pulled a business card out from his pocket, and wrote his personal number and mail on the back.  
  
“Whenever you need me, you have a friend.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all enjoyed - this will be a series of short chapters with more characters popping in and out and generally seeing what everyone is up to in 2018/2019, with a focus on light comedy and a fluffy tone.
> 
> I've always thought the idea of Kanji and Bebe meeting would be very fun and so wanted to explore that a little.
> 
> I decided to not write the phonetic accent Bebe has in the game because some people find it harder to read (or bad stylistically), so I've stuck with the implication his general pronunciation has improved over time (since it's been nearly a decade since Persona 3 took place now one would hope it would have improved) but he still makes some syntax errors and has odd phrasing every now and then.


	2. Check-in

And over the next weeks and months Kanji _did_ talk to Bebe, about all sorts of things - hopes and dreams and sewing patterns, friends and family, _Hamtaro_ lore, help with writeups on textile arts exams… everything really. Bebe hadn’t had anyone he could so easily converse with since, well since his friend Minato on his first trip to Japan.  
  
**Kanji** is the most difficult of the three Japanese alphabets to learn, with tens of thousands of unique characters each with their own unique meanings. It was something that Bebe, along with most non-native speakers, struggled the most to get to grips with - even most native speakers would only ever encounter a small fraction of the true depth of it. The same could be said, he mused, about his friend who shared that name. At first glance people often took Kanji for a simple creature, but he had (in Bebe’s opinion)  a very philosophical soul and would sometimes come out with the most surprising insights.  
  
En route to Inaba, he stared out the train window with his bags of French fabrics and lace. He had gotten some time off from Ms Kirishima (head of _Erie_ \- the fashion house he was working for), so he had promised Kanji that he would bring some special stuff for his mother’s fabric store - having something unique like that would make them the talk of the area. Mrs Tatsumi was a sweet, supportive woman - not at all what he was expecting (did he expect Kanji was the son of some Yakuza matriarch? He’d been watching too many movies...) She reminded him a lot of his dear departed aunt, and so he wanted to help however he could. It also made Kanji smile, which was admittedly a bonus. Most of Kanji’s hometown friends were back for a summer visit from their various comings and goings, so he’d be meeting them too - that made him nervous, but he couldn’t quite figure out why.  


He was looking forward to seeing this Inaba he’d heard so much about. Most people came to Japan for the big city experience - the latest tech, avant garde fashions, ridiculously human robots, all that stuff. While Bebe enjoyed all these well enough, his true interests lay in seeing history and traditional culture. Ever since he got to visit Kyoto, the historical capital, he doubled down on his resolve to experience the many different facets of this country - and being from a small provincial town himself, he rather liked the idea of seeing the more rural side of Japan.

 

* * *

  
  
He stepped out onto the train platform, carefully avoiding whacking into anyone with his many bags. He sent a quick text to Kanji: 

 

> _I am arrived, I going to put luggage at inn then will come to meet you_ _ﾟ+｡:.ﾟヽ(*´∀`)ﾉﾟ.:｡+ﾟ_ _  
> _ _  
> _

Now, on to the - he checked his phone - _Amagi Inn_. The town had a relaxed energy and charm to it - the small, traditional storefronts glimmering prettily in the sunshine. Some people stopped to stare at the newcomer, and Bebe gave them a quick bow. Following his GPS from the train and down the street, he arrived at the Inn quickly and with little issue - another nice thing about small towns. He pushed through the front door and was beginning to look around (so traditional, so beautiful) when he was greeted by a very elegant hostess with long black hair, wearing a red kimono - the epitome of a _Yamato Nadeshiko_ archetype from those old films Bebe learned his first bits of Japanese from. It was kind of surreal seeing her juxtaposed with the run-down gas station he just passed to get here.  
  
“Mr _Geraux_ I assume?” she smiled in what he assumed was meant to be a welcoming way but gave him ever-so-slight haunted doll vibes (i f she turned out to be a ghost he would be only semi-surprised).  
  
“How did you-”  
“Sorry if that was presumptuous of me,” she seemed slightly embarrassed “it was the only booking with a foreign name.”  
“Oh yes,” Bebe laughed, breathing a sigh of relief despite himself “Of course.”  
He signed his full name - _Andre Laurent Jean Geraux_ \- in the ledger at the front desk and the woman handed him a key.  
  
She paused to think for a moment, flipping through the ledger with a quizzical look on her face.  
“Say - this is a long shot but you aren’t Kanji’s… friend by any chance, are you?” she squinted at him “He told me to expect a foreigner called _Bebe_ \- because of the name we assumed that was a woman…”

“No, that is me,” Bebe replied sheepishly “It is a nickname I was given when I first came to Japan - as you can see my full name can prove a bit difficult for people here.”  
“Hm,” the woman nodded, still perplexed “Just the way he talked about you…”  
“He spoke of me?” Bebe said, a little too quickly before toning down his enthusiasm just a tad “Oh - then you must be _Yukiko_ Amagi _.”_  
“That’s right,” Yukiko nodded.  
“You are just as elegant as he said you would be.”  
“Oh, well I-”  
Yukiko was interrupted by the door swinging open, revealing Kanji standing there, all spiked hair and smiles “You’re here!”  
  
He was wearing a black tank top that - _wow, I never realised his arm muscles were so_ \- Bebe didn’t get to finish his thought before he was scooped up by those same arms and spun around wildly. He could only manage to let out a small squeak before Kanji gingerly put him down.  
“Aw geez, are you ok?” he asked, his voice filled with concern “I got kinda caught up in the moment…”  
Bebe could feel the room still spinning “I - I am fine…” he said, standing perfectly straight before immediately falling right over.  
Luckily Kanji was there to catch him “Hey, whoa there little guy - take it easy! I got you”  
Due to how he fell, Bebe’s face was now buried in the other man’s chest - his very firm chest, that smelled lightly of aftershave. Bebe could feel blood rushing to his face (and god knows where else) - perhaps it was best to stay still until he calmed down a little. He’d admittedly never been hugged quite like that before. Where he was from hugs were considered quite intimate, and most Japanese people he’d met were far more reserved than he was so he imagined picking up and spinning around young men wasn’t exactly commonplace here either. Kanji could be... delightfully unreserved at times.  
  
“Kanji, can you please be less rough with my patrons? And my door?” he could hear Yukiko scolding. She sounded miles away.  
“I’m sorry Yukiko,” Kanji’s chest moved up and down as he sighed, embarrassed “I just haven’t seen him in a while is all. Musta got carried away...”  
“Why don’t I leave you two alone to catch up then, huh?” Bebe detected the hint of a laugh in her voice “His key has his room number on it so you can show him where it is.”  
“Yeah no problem, uh - thanks Yukiko.”  
  
Bebe heard her footsteps get further away, and took a deep breath before looking up at Kanji.  
“Hey, you ain’t hurt are you?” he wore an expression of the most pure, genuine concern. Bebe’s stomach did a little flip.  
“No, not at all,” he said shyly “It was quite fun, I am just a little dizzy.”  
“Do I need to lift you to your room?” he asked, worried and flustered.  
“No I - eep,” before Bebe could answer he had been scooped up again and Kanji was making his way down the hallway with the frenchman in his arms and seemingly the entirety of his luggage as well.  
  
Bebe was deposited delicately on his futon, then his luggage beside him. Kanji stood looking at him sheepishly “I’m really sorry.”  
“Mon ami, there is no need for apologies,” Bebe laughed “You really did not have to do that - I am fine.”  
He stood up as if to prove this fact, and lightly took Kanji’s hands, smiling warmly “It’s good to see you.”  
“Yeah,” Kanji laughed, seeming to relax a little “You too.”  
“You really lifted all these at once, Kanji-sama?” Bebe looked around the room at all the bags “You’re very strong.” Very strong and very good and very… Bebe pulled his mind out of quickly careening into the gutter.  
“It was nothing,” Kanji shrugged, looking at the ground “If there’s one thing I’m good for I s’pose it’s lifting shit. You weigh like nothing anyways.” He watched Bebe searching through the luggage and pulling out a small pink box, which he put in with the bag of fabrics for Ma. The frenchman caught his eye and smiled.  
“Chocolate truffles for the Tatsumi house!” for the most part, Bebe thought Japanese cuisine was superior, but he’d be cold in the ground before he’d let anyone slander the French’s dessert-making skills.  
“Damn, you’re gonna show me up,” Kanji laughed “Ma never gets fancy french sweets from me”  
“I... just want to make a good impression,” Bebe replied, suddenly shy again.  
“Wha - hey, she’ll love you man,” he beamed “I mean, who wouldn’t?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is the beginning of Bebe's visit to Inaba, so next up we will see some of the IT - I had originally planned to get right into everyone meeting, but I wanted to set the scene a little first for some flavor.
> 
> (And yes Ms Kirishima is Elly from P1/P2 - in this timeline she now has a successful fashion house)


	3. Out with the Lads

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wherein Bebe meets the IT boys, Yosuke shares some "wisdom" and Teddie acquires some shiny rocks.
> 
> Disclaimer: The opinions expressed by Yosuke Hanamura do not reflect the opinions or views of the Investigation Team at large or the author of this fic, and any purported "facts" by him should be taken with a large grain of salt.

There was something about Bebe that ladies of a certain age absolutely adored, and Kanji’s mother was no exception. Kanji watched them chat amiably, scratching his head. Bebe’s ease with people fascinated him - he was in some ways even more of an outsider - more strange - than Kanji but he didn’t seem to have any issues just talking away to people, laughing and joking without a care in the world. He was strangely intoxicating to watch - and listen to, with that soft French voice of his.

“Oh yes, I make these myself,” Kanji’s mother said, holding out the arm of her kimono so the french boy could examine it “With all this fabric around it’d be wasteful not to, and they’re all really the same basic pattern.”  
“Sugoi - _amazing_ ,” Bebe studied it carefully “And this is just your everyday wear? I can see where your son gets his skill from Mrs. Tatsumi.”  
The grey-haired woman smiled modestly “Well, aren’t you a sweet one. Why don’t I lay out these nice truffles you got us, we can have a cup of tea and I’ll show you how I make them”  
“Ma,” Kanji shook his head “remember me and Bebe gotta meet up with the guys at Aiya .”  
“Oh, yes... “  
“We can all catch up later perhaps?” Bebe bowed courteously “It was a pleasure to meet you, Mrs Tatsumi.”  
“And you too,” she bowed back “it’s so nice that Kanji has a friend like you who can help him with his studies. He’s always talking about you-”  
“Ma…”

* * *

  
  
En route to the beef bowl place, Bebe fidgeted nervously with the little Bijou keyring Kanji had knitted for him.  
  
“So, is this when I meet the famous _Senpai_?” he asked - Kanji spoke of one friend in particular most often - a dashing, popular sort of mentor figure.  
“Oh yeah!” Kanji grinned excitedly “You’re gonna love him, he’s awesome - I can’t wait for you to meet everyone.”

“So, let me see if I have this right -” Bebe began to count on his fingers “Risette I am familiar with already, but she and Naoto are out on important business at the moment. Yukiko I have met earlier today and her Chie is a police officer with short brown hair, but today we are just meeting with the three boys. Senpai is the cool guy, Yosuke is the flippy-haired one that I need to be careful of, and the one who works as a mascot is Teddie.”  
“That about sums it up,” Kanji thought to himself  “Ted’s a bit… in-your-face so if he steps on any of your boundaries just say so, and I’ll make sure he cuts it out.”  
“Don’t worry, I have dealt with Californians before.” Bebe nodded wisely “Johnny Depp once tried to buy the village I grew up in.”  
“Uh yeah,” Kanji agreed - when Teddie had announced _he came from the TV_ , Bebe had taken this to mean Los Angeles, which was probably for the best all things considered.  
  
Once they entered the restaurant, a man with silver hair got up from one of the tables and gave them a little wave. Kanji waved enthusiastically back.  
  
“Hey,” the man said in a voice as smooth as silk “you must be Bebe. I’ve heard a lot about you.”  
“And you must be the legendary _Senpai_ ,” Bebe shook his hand. He had a very calm aura about him, and something Bebe just couldn’t quite place that reminded him of his old friend Minato - they didn’t look alike in the least, or speak alike. He wondered what exactly it was.  
“Ah I see my reputation precedes me,” he laughed  “I’m Yu Narukami.”  
  
A skinny guy in heavily stained scrubs rushed up to the group, out of breath “Hey partner”  
“Hey,” Yu smiled, wrapping his arm around the newcomer’s waist comfortingly and kissing his cheek all while trying to avoid touching the fresh dark red stains covering most of him “What happened to you?”  
“Work was insane,” he sighed heavily, handing a satchel to Yu for safekeeping “I’m gonna go change - be back in five.”  
“The glamorous life of a nurse,” this comment came from the most pretty, most blond, most shojo-animé-looking boy Bebe had ever seen, slurping a watermelon soda casually at the table.  
“Fuck off, Teddie,” the nurse replied, before realising more people were there “Oh uh, hey Kanji. And you must be Bebe right? _Weird... I totally thought that was a female name…_ anyway I’m Yosuke and I won’t shake your hand right now because, well you know, but I swear I will be back and presentable in five minutes tops. Please strike all this,” he gestured broadly to himself, backing away apologetically “from your memory.”  
  
As Yosuke ran off, the soda-drinking blond boy got up and introduced himself with a flourish.  
“I’m Teddie - you might already know me as the charming bear mascot of Junes but please,” he paused for effect “You must keep my true identity a secret - my public would be devastated if the illusion was ruined.”  
  
His Japanese was impeccable as was, well, everything about him. He didn’t seem entirely real, more like someone’s idealised version of a foreigner. Even the air around him seemed to… glitter slightly? That couldn’t be right, could it? He was so - _extra_ \-  Bebe couldn’t help feeling a bit shabby in comparison - Kanji had only described Teddie as somewhat of a bratty younger sibling type after all.  
  
“In Japan, the identity of the people in mascot suits is usually a closely-guarded secret,” Yu clarified “I know that’s not really the case elsewhere.”  
“ _Sumimasen_ , pardon me if this is rude but, if it is secret then why is the Junes mascot also called Teddie?” Bebe asked, puzzled.  
The three exchanged quick glances before Yu answered “Would you believe it’s just a weird coincidence?”  
They were definitely hiding something - probably an embarrassing story - so Bebe didn’t press further.  
“Why don’t you two sit down?” Yu gestured “Yosuke won’t be long.”  
  
They took Yu up on this offer and Bebe began to study the menu - it always took him a while to read all the options in a new place.  
  
“So, everything fine at HQ, Senpai?” Kanji asked, pulling his chair in behind him.  
“As far as I know,” Yu gave a noncommittal shrug “If Hidetoshi could have the place on high alert all day every day he would, but there’s been no emergencies _I’ve_ been made aware of at least.”  
“That guy’s gonna give himself a heart attack.”  
“They actually had to do away with the ability to flag emails as urgent, because he was tagging them all,” he sighed “How’s the finals?”  
“Ugh,” Kanji groaned “Fuckin’ finals. But Bebe’s been helping me with the write-ups a lot.”  
Bebe peeped over his menu “I had to write so many of those in university, I see them when I close my eyes now.”  
A waiter came around to take their orders, everyone opting for the daily special after Teddie cheerfully reminded everyone that it was tradition.  
  
It was about this time that Yosuke reappeared, now wearing a stylish button-up and jeans, and slid in beside his partner.  
Yu looked at him “Is that my shirt?”  
“I couldn’t find any of mine that were clean and I didn’t want to slow things down even more,” Yosuke sighed morosely “I made a bad enough impression already.”  
“It suits you,” Yu smiled playfully, tugging the shirt collar. Yosuke’s face visibly softened.  
  
“So Kanji says you’re from France huh?” Teddie interrupted with a stare that seemed to bore right through Bebe “What is France?”  
“Pardon me?”  
“Uh, I mean - what is France _like_ ?” the mascot corrected himself hurriedly “Are there cute girls there?”  
“France has the cutest girls, Ted” Yosuke interjected, as though he was some sort of expert on the topic “It’s where those maid costumes come from.”  
“Oh wow,” Teddie’s eyes were as wide as dinner plates “Did you have a maid in a fancy outfit at your house Bebe?”  
“I am afraid only wealthy people have maids, much like how it is here,” Bebe smiled “I lived in my aunt and uncle’s farmhouse - we only had chickens there, not maids.”  
“Did the chickens wear fancy outfits?” Teddie asked.  
“Goddammit Teddie, what kinda question is that?” Kanji spoke up, before turning to Bebe “Uh… they didn’t right?”  
Bebe just laughed and shook his head.

* * *

  
  
When they had all finished eating, Yu suggested moving the conversation to the local bar - Bebe was enticed by the promise of Enka, something the others didn’t really _get_ the excitement over but hey, whatever floated his boat. Shiroku Pub’s decoration was heavily themed with blue butterflies and had soft pink and purple lighting, creating a very unique appearance versus the bars Bebe was used to. It was quite charming, in a late-90’s-teen-magazine way.  
Yosuke immediately badgered Kanji into playing darts with him while Teddie went up to get drinks for everyone (and seemingly got distracted swapping small shiny stones with the hostess), while Yu and Bebe hung back to safeguard the booth.  
  
“So,” Yosuke said, pulling the darts from the board and sorting them before handing half to Kanji “Bebe huh?”  
He had a funny sort of smile on his face. Kanji furrowed his brow - he never knew exactly what assbackwards place Yosuke was going to take things.  
“Yeah, what about him?”  
“He’s cute.”  
“I guess,” now Kanji was really confused “I wouldn’t have thought he’s your type.”  
“No,” Yosuke threw the first dart - not a bad shot, not perfect “but he _is_ yours”  
“Whaddaya mean _my type_??” Kanji threw a dart and completely missed where he was aiming. Maybe Yosuke was just trying to throw off his game, with his stupid teasing and stupid face he was making.  
“Small and fancy,” Yosuke managed to hit the triple points ring “Big sad eyes, androgynous-”  
“Alright I get it,” Kanji huffed - as far as he knew he didn’t _have_ a type but there was no point arguing with Yosuke when he had that smug look about him. Kanji managed to land a very angry bullseye “Yeah he’s cute. So what’s your point?”  
Yosuke sidled up closer to him and lowered his voice “You know French people know, like, secret sex stuff right? Stuff no one in Japan even knows about.”  
“Are you fuckin’ with me Yosuke?” Kanji looked at him like he was a complete moron.  
“Dude! I’m serious,” Yosuke insisted “I read about it - French chicks are so horny, they’ll come right up to you and ask if you wanna bang right there and then without so much as a hello.”  
“Did you see this in some porno about maids?”  
“Well… it’s not important where I saw it, because it’s true - everyone knows it,” Yosuke replied confidently “And French dudes, oh man. They know shit, you know? Weird stuff, kinky stuff. Like _Dangerous Liasons_ where everyone is wearing masks, or S&M or something”  
“Really?” the color slowly drained from Kanji’s face “And _all_ French people know this? Like… a lot about sex?”  
“SO MUCH ABOUT SEX,” Yosuke nodded excitedly “They’re all experts! It’s like, in their national curriculum or something!”  
“Oh uh…” Kanji was beginning to feel a little dizzy. He wasn’t exactly _experienced_ himself - if his scary demeanor didn’t do it, his extreme awkwardness around people usually ground romantic prospects to a halt well before they could get started. And Bebe was just so sweet and gentle, it was really jarring to imagine him doing all that stuff Yosuke was talking about. Gah, why did he always have to make everything weird?  
  
Meanwhile, Yu and Bebe were having a much less tense conversation. They sat back as little pink and purple squares of light danced around them.  
“Oh so you work with Kirijo Group?”  
“That’s right, I’m helping with some R&D at the moment,” Yu said, keeping things vague “I can’t say more yet because they have slapped me with so many NDAs.”  
“How exciting,” Bebe said “You know, I was in the same school as the CEO briefly.”  
“You know Mitsuru Kirijo?” this piqued Yu’s interest.  
“ _Know_ is a very strong word,” Bebe laughed “I was friends with someone who lived in the same dormitory as her when she was the student council president - I never actually spoke to her.”  
“You know she’s fluent in French right?” Yu said thoughtfully “She was just saying how she doesn’t really have anyone to practice with - hrm”  
“I don’t think my regional slang would hold up very well around the perfect **_Académie_** French she has learned!”  
The confidence and connections Narukami-senpai had was astounding, all while appearing down-to-earth and approachable - Bebe immediately understood why Kanji spoke of him so effusively. His eyes wandered momentarily to the darts game - it seemed like Yosuke was whispering something with great intensity to Kanji - Bebe wondered what that was all about.  
  
“I wonder what’s going on there,” Yu said, as though he was reading his mind.  
“Your partner, he is very -”  
“He gets some strange ideas into his head at times,” he didn’t let Bebe finish, which was preferable since the frenchman was struggling to find the right word  “But he means well. Speaking of, actually -”  
“Hm?”  
“As you might know, Kanji’s father is no longer with us,” Yu suddenly took on an air of faux-seriousness, pushing up his glasses authoritatively “and I suppose I’m kind of the closest he has to an older brother. So I must ask - what exactly are your intentions, young man?”  
Bebe laughed “My intentions?”  
“Despite all appearances he’s a pretty sensitive guy,” Yu said “I don’t want to see him getting hurt, you know?”  
“He has a very sweet heart - that’s why I want to help him however I can,” Bebe responded cheerfully “I will do all that I can to help him in the world of fabric, you have no need to worry.”  
“Just,” Yu hesitated “Just don’t go breaking his heart.”  
“Oh I,” Bebe got bashful, speaking quietly “I don’t think he likes me that way... so I have been just trying to be a good friend to him.”  
“If I may be frank, he **definitely** likes you that way,” Yu replied, now completely serious “He might not have been able to vocalise it yet so I won’t go telling tales on him but trust me. He talks _a lot_ about you.”  
“You really think he likes me like that?” Bebe whispered excitedly “That would be _Subarashī_ , amazing... I think he is so wonderful - so handsome and kind and strong and gentle, and simply a genius with the needle and thread! I just want to be around him always.”  
He was now involuntarily gushing - never one for half-measures, when Bebe felt something he really _felt it_ emphatically, so he tended to get a bit carried away when expressing his emotions. Yu cracked a smile, as though this was somehow what he was waiting to hear (it seemed that even after all this time he couldn’t help going into Mary Poppins mode, helping everyone along).    
  
“Sorry, _Moushiwake arimasen,_ sorry,” Bebe put his head in his hands “I just -”  
“It’s okay,” Yu laughed “It’s actually quite sweet. But if I can give you some advice, Kanji is really, really shy - so if you really feel that way _you_ need to tell _him_. He’s not going to make the first move.”  
“Mmm,” Bebe nodded, resolved “I will just have to think up the best time to tell him then.”  
  
A pile of shiny stones were unceremoniously dropped into the middle of the table, startling the two of them.  
“Look what I got!” Teddie beamed triumphantly.

“Teddie… the drinks?” Yu said patiently.  
“Oh yeah,” the blond boy blinked “I guess I got distracted - my bad, Sensei”  
“It’s fine,” Yu shook his head, getting up “you show Bebe your gems and I’ll take care of the drinks. Oh and Bebe - think about what I said, yeah?”  
“I will, thank you Narukami-senpai.” Bebe gave him a gracious smile.  
  
“So,” Teddie began, sliding into the booth “This one is topaz…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one was a lot of fun, introducing a little bit of what the gang has been up to. Yu's speech is the hardest to nail down since his dialogue is up to the player a lot of the time and even the characterization between the Arena games and the P4 animé varies a lot, so I hope you like my take on him!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is where things start to get steamy - literally and figuratively. 
> 
>  
> 
> Fluff, fluff, some strong language, and more fluff.

It was late as they made their way home, the night clear and full of stars - it was remarkable how much more clearly you could see them all than in the big city. The others had headed off on their various ways, with Kanji offering to walk Bebe back to the Inn.  
  
“You lived in a regular crappy town like this?”   
“Much more small than this one!”     
“I thought everyone in France lived in castles and wore fancy clothes and shit,” Kanji shook his head in disbelief.   
“Did you not hear?” Bebe laughed “That became, let us say, somewhat unfashionable after the French Revolution.”   
“Wha, like _Les Mis_?” Kanji didn’t remember any castles being in the musical, except when that little kid sang about one on a cloud, but he thought that might have been a metaphor.   
“That was _a_ French revolution, but not the big one,” Bebe’s eyes shone brightly in the moonlight “You know _Les Miserables_?”   
“Yeah, I cried like a baby watching it,” Kanji remembered “Specially when Anne Hathaway died.”   
“But you have not truly experienced it until you see it in the original French,” Bebe clasped his hands excitedly. This was not something you wanted to get into an argument with a French musical theatre fan with, as his comments (more like mini essays, for the most part) on old forums could attest to.   
“If… _when_ you come to France, I will bring you. The country might be a bit of a disappointment from the stories people tell of it here. It is not as beautiful as Japan, but I will make sure you see all the best things - I will protect you from Paris Syndrome at least!”   
“Paris Syndrome?” Kanji asked, a bit worried “Is that like Apathy Syndrome?”   
“No, not nearly that serious,” Bebe reassured him “It is when travelers come from Japan and get - how do you say this -  depressed when Paris is dirty and full of pickpockets and the people are rude. So, you know, when it is _Paris_ ” He said this with a tint of disdain in his voice for reasons that were a mystery to Kanji - _wasn’t Paris the most romantic place in the world?_   
  
“If it is Summer I will take you to Nice to the ocean, if it is Winter then to Strasbourg to the Christmas market,” Bebe said dreamily, getting caught up in the fantasy of it all, barely noticing where he was or what direction they were walking until suddenly the inn was right in front of his face.   
  
“Wow, you know about so much stuff Bebe,” Kanji simply said in reply, hoping his blush wouldn’t show in the darkness.   
“I am sure _you_ could show me many things too,” Bebe smiled cheerfully, thinking of all the exciting experiences Japan had to offer.   
“...” Kanji almost choked on air then quickly avoided eye contact by studying the ground intently “Nah I don’t know nothin’...I’m not smart or classy like you.”   
“Well I think you are full of unique and beautiful insights,” Bebe said “I want to share so many things with you.”

“...” Kanji was about to reply, but suddenly all that garbage Yosuke had said to him came rushing into his brain. Was Bebe talking about those French sex secrets? Is that what he wanted to share? Kanji didn’t know if his brain was ready to hear them.   
“Uh..”   
“Are you all right, mon ami?” the frenchman gave his companion a concerned look.   
“Yeah, sorry,” he laughed it off “Just ain’t used to compliments is all.”   
“I will just have to pay you more compliments in future then, so you can grow used to them,” he smiled shyly, standing on his toes to lightly plant a kiss on each of the other man’s cheeks “Now I have shared with you how we say goodbye to dear friends in France.”   
“Oh,” Kanji smiled crookedly, surprised “That’s how they do it in France huh? Like this?”   
He stooped slightly to shakily plant a kiss on each of Bebe’s cheeks.   
“ _Sugoi_ ,” Bebe smiled “You got it perfectly.”   
“G’night,” Kanji turned to go “You be safe little guy, and rest up.”   
“ _Je rêverai de toi_ ” Bebe called after him.   
“Huh?”   
“ _Oyasuminasai_ \- goodnight Kanji-sama,” Bebe smiled innocently, giving a little wave as he disappeared through the door.

 

* * *

  
The next day, they began by sharing truffles with Mrs Tatsumi, her swapping tidbits about making traditional Japanese clothes. Then the one thing Bebe really wanted to do before he went home was go to the hot springs. Kanji had… mixed experiences in that arena to say the least, but he found it very difficult to say no to those big sad blue eyes.   
  
“So, you know this ain’t some sex thing,” he blurted as he leant on the hotel room door frame, watching Bebe dig through his luggage for a yukata he wanted Kanji to look at. _What the hell_? Why did that come out of his mouth? He was trying to say something normal but his brain kept bouncing between that mishap with the girls, and then - ugh - the shadow realm, and on top of that he had Yosuke’s stupid voice coming in repeating all that weird stuff he’d said last night. Bebe straightened up and turned to him with an arched eyebrow.   
“Despite all national stereotypes to the contrary,” he said somewhat teasingly “I do understand the concept of a bath, Kanji-sama.”   
“Yeah of course,” Kanji rubbed his neck, embarrassed “Sorry.”   
“I actually have read a lot about the _Onsen_ ,” he replied dreamily “when I was on my high school exchange the class went to Kyoto and i was excited to try the hot springs, but I decided this was the best moment to try wearing a yukata for the first time. I somehow ended tangled up in it, it wouldn’t stay on and I was too embarrassed to leave my room. ”   
“I’ve had some awkward experiences there myself,” Kanji felt a little better now that Bebe had shared that.   
“Oh?”   
“Accidentally walked into the wrong bath once and got a bucket thrown at my head by screaming girls.”   
“You know, perhaps it was for the best that I didn’t leave my room,” Bebe giggled “I would not have been able to read the signs at all back then - I probably would have ended up in much the same situation.”   
They both laughed at this idea. Talking like this was really taking the edge off Kanji’s anxiety - Bebe always seemed so chipper and optimistic, it was hard to stay worried around him.   
  
“Ah,” Bebe finally found the garment he was looking for, and laid it out on the bed “here she is. I was hoping you could show me how to wear this properly after we are done in the hot springs.”   
  
Kanji ran his hands along the fabric. It was high quality -  black with a pattern of tiny gold butterflies and a gold belt.   
“Huh,” Kanji studied it carefully “Well, this is a furisode so it’s a little bit different, that might have been what tripped you up. Mostly women wear them on real special occasions.”   
“Oh, it’s different?” Bebe sighed, feeling a bit foolish “I based this on something I saw on television so I just thought...”   
“What did it come from?”   
“If I tell you a secret you must promise not to laugh,” Bebe said seriously.   
“Cross my heart,” Kanji nodded - he had been laughed at enough in his life to never willingly inflict that on someone else.   
“Well, I used to watch _Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle_ when I was a child,” Bebe said as though confessing something dreadful.   
“Oh, Fai wore one of these!” Kanji grinned, remembering that show from his own childhood “Man, that was such a good fuckin’ show. Though nothing beats _Cardcaptor Sakura_ because of all the cool outfits.”   
“Of course,” Bebe smiled - it was refreshing to have someone around who never judged him, no matter how silly what he said was. He resisted telling Kanji he’d make a great Kurogane (even though he really would) - he didn’t want to totally expose his childhood weeb beginnings after all.   
  
“Anyway,” he gathered the towels and various accoutrements “Shall we go?”   


* * *

  
  
It was just the two of them in the bath - which was good, Kanji guessed. They could talk all the _Hamtaro_ they wanted in private without other people getting weird.   
But it also made him... nervous?   
_Why?_   
  
When he stepped into the bath, Bebe was already sitting in the corner peering at him through wet eyelashes, his cheeks flushed slightly from the steam. Kanji realised, looking at him now, just how covered up Bebe usually was - this might have been the first time he saw his bare neck or wrists, let alone anything else. His skin was so pale and smooth, like a statue or something. Kanji didn’t realise he was staring until Bebe caught his eye and blushed deeply.  
  
“Do you want to sit down?” Bebe coughed lightly, looking away “There is plenty of room.”  
“Oh uh, yeah,” Kanji realised he’d just been standing in one spot spacing out, totally butt-naked. He quickly sat himself down close by “Sorry about that.”  
  
“You seem lost in thought,” Bebe said, trying to distract himself from the fact that he’d just seen, well, everything. _Kanji really is a man of many… sizeable talents._    
“Is something the matter, Kanji-sama?”  
“I uh,” he stared into those big blue eyes, initially he wanted to deny everything but this sparked some resolve “Okay this’ll sound weird but - I just realised I’d never seen you even in short sleeves before. Your skin is so pale.”  
“Pale?” Bebe laughed teasingly “Is that a compliment or an insult?”   
“A compliment, of course!” Kanji was baffled as to how it could be seen as an insult - maybe things were different in France “It looks so.. so smooth.”  
“Smooth, eh?” Bebe shot him a sly smile “Is that something you like?”  
“Well, yeah,” Kanji said rather obtusely “better than rough right?”  
“Some people like it rough, or so I am told.” Bebe wore a secret kind of smile that Kanji couldn’t quite understand.  
“D… do you like it rough?” Kanji asked.  
“Sometimes,” he playfully walked his fingers up Kanji’s arm “Some would say you have a rough exterior, and I like you.”  
As their eyes met, something was - ever so slowly - beginning to dawn on Kanji.  
Cautiously, he reached out and lightly brushed Bebe’s arm with his hand “Damn, it really _is_ smooth - and soft too.”  
“Kanji-sama…” Bebe’s voice was barely above a whisper - it made all the little hairs on the back of Kanji’s neck stand to attention. They sat staring silently at one another for what seemed like an eternity.

  
“...”   
“...”   
“Is it true that in France you all get taught secret... sex stuff? Complicated stuff? And you’re all like experts or something?” Kanji blurted, his hand still on Bebe’s arm.   
“ _Sumimasen?_ Excuse me?”

“Because I don’t know a lot about that stuff,” he continued, eyes darting around - the words just flooding out of him like a dam busting “And I, and I -”  
Bebe cupped Kanji’s chin in his hand, shushing him lightly.   
“Do not fret,” he said, inching closer “I don’t know what ideas are inside your head or who put them in there,” (he could take a good guess though) “I cannot say I have heard of these secret expert classes. Is there a particular reason why you are having these thoughts around me, mon ami?”   
“-I” the former delinquent looked about ready to pass out, so Bebe slid his hand to the back of Kanji’s neck and placed the other one on his arm to make sure he didn’t keel over.   
  
  
“Kanji-sama, I wanted to say this in a little more dignified setting,” he let out a small bashful laugh “So please forgive me if this arrives a bit clumsy. When I am with you my heart is filled with the little butterflies. I think you say it like - _daisuki da yo,_ yes?”   
“Y - you mean,” Kanji stared unblinkingly “you like me?”   
“I like you _very much_ ,” Bebe smiled softly “And how does your heart feel, mon chéri?”   
“I… I like you too,” he replied, uncharacteristically quietly. He felt like his mouth had all dried up, but he took a deep breath and met Bebe’s stare - this was important “Honestly, I love being around you - that we can talk about whatever, that you get me, that you don’t make fun of me no matter what I say. When I’m with you I can’t stop looking at you, you’re so...  You’re like a… a really pretty duck… one of the ones with a ribbon on its neck, y’know? I never met anyone like you before. I love when you laugh, it’s like the prettiest music in the world and… yeah...”   
  
Bebe didn’t say anything. After quickly scanning the perimeter for any looky-loos he merely pulled Kanji’s head closer and gave him a sweet, brief kiss - on the lips this time.   
  
“If you like me, and I like you - well, we can take everything just as slowly as you like, you know,” he whispered sweetly “I am not the kind to rush anyone, mon chéri.”   
“But Yosuke said -”   
“Yosuke says a lot of things you should not listen to - is that not what you told me before meeting him?” Bebe rested his forehead against Kanji’s and sighed contentedly, fingers tracing little heart patterns absentmindedly on his chest. Kanji wrapped his arms easily around the small frenchman (in part to steady themselves in the water) and went in for a kiss, bolder this time. Bebe was momentarily surprised by his forwardness, but soon closed his eyes and just enjoyed the moment. _For someone whose tongue is so frequently tied while speaking, and who was just fretting about being inexperienced,_ **_quelle chance_ ** _\- he is remarkably good at this!_   
  
Kanji broke away, grinning - he seemed pleased with himself “Just like they do in France, right?”   
Bebe suppressed a fit of giggles “C’est magnifique, mon chéri!” seeing the blank look in Kanji’s eyes, he added softly:   
  
“It means magnificent, my darling.” 


	5. 完二(◍•ᴗ•◍)❤アンドレ

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I had to split this chapter into two as the second half was getting way too long - so please enjoy this installment of pure fluff! We skip ahead just a bit and enter on a blissful little moment

_アンドレ･ローラン･ジャン･ジェラール_ _  
_ _  
_Bebe carefully wrote out on the strawberry-scented _My Melody_ notepad.  
  
“All of that?” Kanji stared in disbelief.  
“All of it,” he replied, then writing in block Roman letters underneath:  
  
_André_ _  
__Laurent_ _  
__Jean_ _  
___Geraux  
  


They were snuggled under a metric tonne of blankets, having a lazy Saturday morning. Kanji had found himself crashing at Bebe’s apartment often of late - since it was a little more roomy than Kanji’s tiny student one, and didn’t have paper-thin walls that you could hear neighbours playing atonal soundcloud rap through at all hours, it helped him get a better sleep. It wasn’t huge but Bebe had decorated it expertly - no surprise. His love of traditional Japanese culture was evident - with a collection of decorative fans artfully arranged, and posters from his favorite Kurosawa films on the walls. He did have a very plush western-style bed, with a duvet and blankets and an array of throw pillows - all the dressing verged on a bit  _ too much _ in Kanji’s opinion, until he actually got into it and felt like a cosy little bird in a nest.   
  
He never thought he’d be so comfortable around a person, but with Bebe he could just be himself and didn’t have to worry about being made fun of, no matter how stupid the questions he asked were.   
  
“So - _ アンドレ -  _ Andore - is that your family name?”   
“No, that is my given name, like Kanji for you,” Bebe smiled sweetly, his head resting on Kanji’s shoulder.   
“ _ Laurent _ is my middle name, then  _ Jean Geraux _ \- this is the family name.”   
“That’s a lot of names,” Kanji’s brow furrowed “But what part did  _ Bebe _ come from?”   
“I don’t know,” he laughed “They just started calling me it in Gekkoukan - it means baby in French so I am as lost as you, mon amour”   
“ _ Andore Lōran Jan Jerāru,”  _ Kanji read the katakana phonetically, slowly, carefully.   
“Perfection!” Bebe actually turned and gasped a little - he hadn’t heard anyone here get it quite so well, and he knew his beloved struggled with language at the best of times “What a talented sweetheart I have!” he cooed happily and nuzzled into Kanji’s neck.    
Kanji sighed blissfully -  _ anyone who says mornings get better than this is lying _ .    
“I’ve been kinda practicing a little,” he admitted, bashfully “I wanted to call you by your real name once in a while when we’re together but I didn’t know what part was  _ your _ name. So... can I call you André-chan sometimes?”    
Bebe sat up, looking at Kanji with wide eyes and what his sweetheart had come to know as a giddy look.   
“...Huh?”   
  
Bebe pounced on the larger man, covering him with kisses and whispering little French things into his ear. The petite designer was not physically strong by any stretch of the imagination, but Kanji wasn’t in the habit of putting up much resistance to him - he hadn’t the foggiest idea what any of those little French whispers meant, but he knew they usually meant good news.    
While not perhaps an academic bright spark, Kanji was an excellent visual learner and was great with his hands. The  _ learning by doing _ system worked well for him, much to Bebe’s delight, and while the frenchman had kept true to his word of taking things slowly and gently and always at Kanji’s own pace, soon enough the former delinquent felt confident that he was party to any International Sexy Secrets Yosuke had mentioned, maybe even more.    
  
  


* * *

  
  
Once they had (eventually) crawled out of bed, Kanji sat eating the last of the French Toast Bebe had prepared, scribbling absentmindedly on the  _ My Melody _ notepad:   
  


_ 完二 _ _ (◍•ᴗ•◍)❤アンドレ _

  
Bebe must have changed his outfit at least twenty times - he’d even got his hair freshly cut for the occasion - a trendier, more asymmetrical version of his usual undercut: a little less Joan of Arc and a little more chic.   
  
“How about this one?” he was now wearing a black bomber jacket with gold embellishment.   
“You look great babe,” Kanji said “but you looked great in all the other ones too. All your clothes are super cute.”    
Bebe looked in the mirror and sighed, dissatisfied - he disappeared back into the bedroom and Kanji could hear him rummaging in his closet. Bebe absolutely, positively needed to get this just right - this evening he was finally meeting Kanji’s most sophisticated friend - Naoto Shirogane. He hadn’t a chance of keeping up with an internationally renowned private detective and former child prodigy, but maybe if he  _ looked _ the part he could fake any lack of requisite sophistication as simply being down to a language barrier. Kanji felt bad - he had just thrown on some black jeans, a black shirt with some subtle skull details on it, pointy boots and his nice new leather jacket and he felt good to go. The idea of changing things up too much gave him anxiety, he knew these things worked on him so he didn’t stray far from that proven formula. Bebe however always seemed to have about fifty ideas at once, sometimes choosing outfits that were more like art installations.   
  
“Aha!” he had found something that just might work.    
  
Bebe appeared back out into the living area, this time clad in an all-white ensemble:    
trendy white streetwear-style pants tucked into white combat boots, a white shirt and a white cape-coat with a high asymmetrical neck. Kanji was struck with the same thought he had when they first met -  _ he looks like that Ryo guy from that Devilman Crybaby thing. _

 

“Yeah!” Kanji clapped “This one looks awesome!”    
He got up and gently took Bebe’s hand to spin him around lightly - this was remarkably easy with their height difference “You look dope, I’m almost afraid to touch you in case I get dirt on you somehow.”    
“You really think it will be okay?” Bebe looked up at him worriedly.   
“Yeah of course,” Kanji rubbed his back reassuringly “What’s this about?”   
“I just,” Bebe looked at the ground, embarrassed “I don’t want to make a bad impression…”   
“You always make a great impression, who could be mad at someone as cute and sweet as you?” he planted a little kiss on the tiny part of Bebe’s neck that was still exposed in his fancy coat, prompting a little giggle from the french boy. Kanji laughed playfully “And if anyone gives you trouble, I’ll beat the shit outta them.” 

 


	6. Tea with the Prince

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This was the part of the last chapter that got so long it had to be split into its own thing - Naoto just talks too much to be contained in half a chapter! 
> 
> Fancy high tea, some real talk, and Raidou Kuzunoha.

It was Naoto’s suggestion to meet in the fancy rococo-style tearoom. High ceilings, gold embellishments, pastel walls, pastel cakes, and so many frills - Bebe felt like he was in an Arsene Lupin story already and he hadn’t even met the detective prince yet. He didn’t feel like the gentleman thief himself of course, but some sort of inconsequential background character that just happened to be blessed with excellent dress sense.   
“Man, this place is _nice_ ,” Kanji gave him a lopsided, nervous smile “I hope they don’t kick me out for not being classy enough”  
“The only reason they could kick you out would be for being too adorable,” Bebe gave his hand a quick, covert squeeze “But from what I understand there is no law here against that.”   
Kanji tried to hide his faint pink blush by scanning the room - “Ah, I recognize that hat!”   
  
He wove through the many tables with their teapots and tiny cakes piled high, Bebe following close behind him until they reached their destination - a small table where a smartly-dressed stranger sat sipping tea from a delicate porcelain cup, engrossed in a book.   
“Naoto!” Kanji grinned “It’s great to see you!”  
  
The detective stood to greet them - wearing a crisp white shirt tied with a blue lavallière, an expertly tailored navy peacoat, slacks with an immaculately pressed seam and perfectly shined work shoes. Everything was arranged _just so_. Bebe’s breath caught in his throat just a tad when he got a proper look - Short, dark blue hair with messy bangs just skimming the top of equally dark blue eyes and a grave, solemn air - it was like he was standing in front of some funhouse mirror specter of Minato.  
  
“It’s good to see you too Kanji,” a polite bow “And you must be Bebe,” Naoto turned to him and firmly shook his hand - something Bebe had grown a bit unaccustomed to here in Japan.  
“The famed Detective Prince,” Bebe bowed nervously as Naoto’s eyes seemed to bore right through him. He felt as though he was being sized up as a suspect in a crime he hadn’t committed yet.  
“Well, I’m just a run-of-the-mill detective now,” Naoto - it wasn’t quite a smile but Naoto made a polite facial expression. That was something Bebe had never considered - when child prodigies grew up, what did you call them? _Former child prodigies_? Simply _adults?_ _  
_  
“Please, sit,” the diminutive detective gestured to the two empty chairs “You must forgive my lack of decorum - ordering without you, reading at the table. In my desire for punctuality I somewhat overshot the mark and ended up being rather early. If I don’t leave in time, I find my lunch break gets severely decimated - there are too many people looking to monopolize my time if I stand around too long.”  
Kanji’s friend had a stiff, overly polite manner of speech - oddly enough this made things _easier_ for Bebe to understand. It wasn’t quite as old-fashioned as the samurai talk he started out with before his high school exchange, but it was sort of like how a grandfather might talk.  
  
“Don’t worry about all that,” Kanji waved away these decorum concerns “What’re you reading?”   
“Oh, just _A Study in Scarlet_ ,” Naoto replied almost sheepishly “Again.”  
“Oh, you are a fan of Sherlock Holmes?” Bebe piped up “That seems very fitting.”  
“Shamelessly stereotypical of me, I’m afraid,” Naoto gave a small laugh, placing the book neatly back in its designated space in the perfectly organised satchel.   
  
“Naoto’s been real busy on a big case with the Kirijo Group.” Kanji said authoritatively, the detective immediately shooting him a steely look that seemed to say not in front of the normal people.  
“Oh, you are working with Narukami-senpai?” Bebe tilted his head to the side, picking up his menu - the names for the pastries were in French as well as Japanese - a welcome surprise.  
“In a very broad sense yes,” Naoto replied somewhat guardedly “But I’ve more been helping to track down information to help replenish the archives that were destroyed in the accident back in 1999. Some research has been irrevocably lost - given the nature of some of it, I’d argue that might be for the best - but I’ve been working closely with Madame Ginko of the Kuzunoha clan, we believe we may have some sources in Europe who had catalogued the kind of information we require. Ginko’s truly an inspirational figure - to come up in that era like she did, and as a woman no less.”  
“Kuzunoha,” Bebe replied, wide-eyed “Is this Madame Ginko any relation of Raidou Kuzunoha?”  
“How... do you know that name?” Naoto’s eyes widened then narrowed, going into investigation mode.  
“Oh, my great-grandmother brought back stories of a famous detective called Raidou Kuzunoha from a holiday she took to Japan. She passed down the stories to Mémé, but my uncle said a lot was exaggerated. Like the stories where his cat could talk,” Bebe laughed “She had a fanciful imagination.”   
“Sounds like you take after her,” Kanji smiled playfully, warranting a small shove from Bebe.  
Naoto seemed to relax slightly “Oh, well - she’s from the Kyouji branch so she probably doesn’t have much connection to him..”   
“Naoto comes from two long lines of detectives,” Kanji mused “So maybe some of your great-great-whatevers worked with him?”  
“Perhaps,” Naoto actually did smile a little this time “Grandfather insists his own parents worked extensively with him, but he refuses to provide any concrete evidence. Anyway - I am sure these work minutae are extremely tedious to hear about. How are both of you?”  
  
Kanji and Bebe exchanged a happy glance.  
“Great,” Kanji beamed.  
“How were your finals? Did you remember to study?” Naoto asked seriously.  
“Yeah, of course” he expressed mild annoyance at this question “Bebe helped me with the write-ups so I’m just waiting on the results now.”  
“Oh good,” Naoto nodded, clearly relieved “He’s not always… the most academic.”  
“Kanji has a lot of beautiful ideas,” Bebe gave his sweetheart’s hand a secret squeeze underneath the table “it just takes time and maybe a helping hand to help him express them.”  
“It’s good that you found someone so patient,” Naoto addressed Kanji, taking a long sip of tea “That was always important to you.”   
A momentary look passed between them that Bebe didn’t quite understand.  
“Oh shit, we should probably order,” Kanji said, picking up his menu “Don’t wanna use up your whole lunch break just pokin’ you about work.” 

 

* * *

  
  
They had opted for one of those fancy stacks of miniature cakes and macarons - fruit tea for Kanji, more earl grey for Naoto, and a latte for Bebe. Kanji had momentarily stepped out to the bathroom and the topic had somehow turned to family.   
  
“And you were raised by your grandfather, you said?” Bebe enquired “You speak very fondly of him.”   
“Yes, my parents died when I was quite young so he’s really the only parent I’ve known for most of my life.” Naoto replied “And you were raised by your aunt and uncle?”   
“Yes, my mother’s brother and his wife. Maman died soon after I was born, from a - hmmm how do you say this -  a sickness, I do not know its name in Japanese,” he said with a faraway look in his eyes “I am not sure what happened to my father, my uncle refuses to talk about it - it seemed to be quite, um -   _traumatique -_ whatever happened. My uncle was never an easy man to talk with at the best of times. They never had any children of their own, so I suppose I filled that space a little bit.   
Do you worry for your grandfather now you are out on your own?”   
“Sometimes, yes,” Naoto nodded solemnly “He isn’t getting any younger, and I’m the only Shirogane grandchild. So there’s no one else really to look after him should he fall ill, but continuing on the Shirogane family legacy rests solely on me as well and I don’t want to let him down by doing subpar detective work and somehow tarnishing his name.”   
“It sounds like a lot of pressure for one person to take on,” Bebe said sympathetically.   
“What about you?” Naoto asked “Are you worried about your uncle? He’s all the way back in France after all.”   
“I _was_ worried, his mind had not been doing so well for some time after my aunt died. But my cousin Aurelie has moved to the neighbouring village now with her children, so he has many eyes to be peeled for him. I said that if I ever returned to Japan no one would have to pay my way so I wouldn’t be taking out of his pockets again - since I got the scholarship to do my internship with _Erie,_ I could return with the clear conscience. And now I have a job, I can send some money home each month - and Japanese candies for the cousins.”   
“I wish I had a big family like that,” Naoto sighed, examining a macaron cautiously - was this praline or coffee flavor? Only one way to find out.   
“You can have some of mine,” Bebe laughed “There are too many! Their birthdays are bankrupting me.”   
“I suppose that’s Catholicism for you,” the detective took a tentative bite - praline! _Thank goodness_.   
  
Kanji arrived back from his bathroom sojourn “What’re you two talking about so seriously?”   
“Death,” Naoto replied, deadpan “Aging, the passage of time.”   
“Geez,” he took his seat once more “You always were good at keeping it light.”   
“I was just telling Naoto-sama about my relatives,” Bebe said cheerfully.   
“Oh, he’s got like a million of em,” Kanji grinned “they all got names like perfume.”   
“Well just don’t mix their names up with perfumes when finally meet them, mon cheri,” Bebe chided “Do you find it a bit intimidating?”   
“I’m only intimidated by that uncle of yours,” Kanji’s brow furrowed “He sounds like a real hardass.”   
“I don’t think Kanji always realises how intimidating _he_ can be,” Naoto laughed, finishing the last of the Earl Grey. The detective’s phone lit up and vibrated across the table “Ah, that would be Madame Ginko - looks like our charming little moment of rest here is up. I’ll deal with the bill on the way out, but feel free to stay on.”   
Naoto expertly straightened out the clothes that were not even remotely messy - hat went on, coat buttoned just so, satchel not the least bit askew.   
“Kanji - you should stop by Headquarters soon,” Naoto said, eyeing Bebe cautiously  “We need to talk about - well, you know. **The thing** .”   
“Oh yeah, _that thing_ with Senpai’s project,” Kanji nodded after a few seconds struggling to understand what Naoto was getting at.   
“And Bebe, actually if you have the time you should stop by too,” the detective turned to him “the President is quite stressed ahead of this Europe business, she feels like her French is getting too rusty from the dearth of native speakers she can practice with.”   
“Narukami-senpai also mentioned this. It seems she is very serious about it,”  Bebe bowed respectfully to his departing new friend “I will give this considerable consideration, arigatou Naoto-sama.”   
“Kanji - always great to see you, I’m really happy to see you doing so well,” Naoto “and it was lovely to meet you too Bebe. Take care of him-”   
The phone in Naoto’s pocket started ringing and vibrating quite violently *sigh* “Right, I better get going.”  


* * *

 

> * * *
> 
> **_Footnotes for some obscure references_ **   
>    
>  _[Madame Ginko](https://megamitensei.fandom.com/wiki/Madame_Ginko) _
> 
> _Bebe's reference to his great-grandmother going on holiday to Japan and coming back with fanciful stories is a gag[based on this character](https://66.media.tumblr.com/eba19ea260b58ba5c287a1fc021e2b93/tumblr_pnnzksE7aO1r7e1r2o1_1280.png)_

 


	7. Date Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kanji and Bebe stop by Crossroads to see some familiar faces, and a new one. 
> 
> Pure fluff where characters have a nice time in a place where they can safely forget their worries.

 

 

After departing the tearooms, their day was spent browsing the stores for fabrics and cute trinkets, and after all was said and done Bebe suggested they go for a drink at _Crossroads_. This was a favorite spot for him, the atmosphere was cosy and the regulars were a colorful cast of friendly faces. The Mama-san, Lala, had gotten an earful of updates about Kanji from him, of course, so when she saw them arrive together she greeted them warmly.

“Well look who it is,” the purple-haired woman grinned “Aren’t you two just the cutest?”  
“Bonsoir Madame Lala,” Bebe air-kissed her delicately on each cheek before bowing respectfully “How is the night treating you?”   
“Better now that I see your happy little face, _Petit Filous_ ,” she pinched Bebe’s cheek like an aunt at a family gathering, then turned to Kanji “And it’s nice to see you again too, handsome. I haven’t seen you since you two had your first date here.”   
  
Kanji’s brows knit together in confusion “Date?”   
“The first day we met, mon cheri” Bebe said helpfully “When Risette asked you to help me with the sewing supplies.”   
“Ohhhh,” Kanji shook his head, laughing “That wasn’t a date… wait, was that a date?”   
“Oh honey…” Lala laughed, before turning and saying quietly, behind her hand to Bebe “I always say big, strong, sweet and stupid are the ideal qualities in a man - he’s a keeper.”   
  
Before Kanji could ask what was going on, they were distracted by a tipsy woman with bangs swiveling in her barstool and bopping Bebe lightly on the head.   
“This one,” she swayed slightly “just hasn’t stopped talking about you since last time you were here.”   
“Oh uh,” Kanji could feel the tips of his ears turning pink “Is that right?”   
“Ohya-sama! I didn’t see you there,” Bebe shrugged sheepishly at Kanji “You are a topic I am passionate about, I suppose.”   
“Ichiko-chan,” Lala sighed “Stop bothering the other customers and - is that a bottle of sake in your hand?”   
“... no” Ichiko replied stubbornly, cradling the half-drunk sake in her arms like an infant . “It’s my date for tonight.”   
  
“May I show you to your table?” a beautiful woman with bright red hair and a beauty mark on her chin appeared from behind the bar, like a well-timed palette cleanser from the ongoing chaos.   
“Oh - this is Erica, my new waitress. She’s an absolute peach,” Lala smiled warmly as she managed to wrestle the bottle away from Ichiko and stash it safely somewhere hidden behind the bar “Last place she worked she had to deal with some real creeps disrespecting her. The unprofessionalism in that establishment - it was a real hellhole.” she tutted.   
“Some Grade A romper room fuckery,” Ichiko agreed. Neither Kanji nor Bebe knew exactly what her drunk talk meant but they nodded along politely.   
  
“Mama Lala is a little overprotective of me,” Erica laughed as she showed the boys to their booth “But she’s sweet - she’s a marked improvement from my old boss, that’s for sure.”   
“I can imagine,” Kanji said thoughtfully “A gorgeous girl like you must get all sortsa unwanted attention.”   
“And that lovely red hair of yours - she such a rare thing here,” Bebe chimed in “I have had some people ask to take pictures with me simply for being blond!”   
“A few people have shouted _Anne of Green Gables_ at me,” Erica laughed “But they’re a lot less _grabby_ than where I was before, which is nice.” she tapped the little tablet screen in her hand.   
  
“Anything to get you started?”   
“ The usual for me please,” Bebe chirped, handing his bank card to Erica so she could tap it on the screen “And what would you like mon cheri?”   
“Whatever pink fancy drink with the umbrella they gave me the last time,” Kanji replied - he wasn’t much good with the names of fancy cocktails.   
“I think that was a special kind of daquiri,” Bebe offered “What do you recommend for someone who likes sweet drinks, Erica-sama?”   
“I’ll whip something special up,” Erica tapped her tablet again and gave the guys an amazingly bright, perfect-teeth smile “Those should be with you shortly! Don’t be afraid to ask if you need anything else.” she said as she walked away to greet more incoming patrons.   
  
Bebe scooted around in the booth so he was sitting right next to Kanji, and rested his head on his sweetheart’s shoulder.   
“Whoa,” Kanji seemed panicked, sitting up very straight “Is it ok to like, do that here? In public?”   
Bebe looked at him quizzically “You _do_ know what kind of bar this is, right?”   
“People don’t like, touch one another in public Bebe,” Kanji said quietly, blushing beet red and staring at the floor “No matter what type of bar it is. I dunno how they do it in France -”   
“If this were France people would be basically fucking on the dance floor,” Bebe said, a little annoyed, as Kanji turned even deeper red and avoided eye contact.   
“I am not doing anything I have not seen other patrons do already - I saw Oyha-sama kissing one of the bartenders then she climbed on the table and pretended to be a cat, nothing we could do would be half as attention-grabbing as her run-of-the-mill evening,” Bebe sulked, folding his arms. He was tired of people assuming he just didn’t _get_ what was going on around him.   
“’m sorry,” Kanji mumbled, seemingly addressing his shoes “I… I’m not used to this… any of this. Relationshippy stuff… I spent so long worried about people lookin’ at me and if I was doin’ something weird that they were gonna start a fight over…”   
He seemed ready to cry - this also was the first time he’d made reference to them being in a _relationship_ . Bebe reached out and gently took Kanji’s hand, under the table where it wouldn’t make him more self-conscious, stroking it reassuringly.   
  
Presently, Madame Lala herself arrived with their drinks.   
“Just came to check on the cute couple,” she smiled “One umeshu, and Erica has whipped up something called the Tower of Babel for you, handsome. I have no idea what’s in it but she thinks it’ll be a real winner.” She presented Kanji with a very long glass with a red-pink-white gradient going on.   
“Madame Lala,” Bebe said brightly “Would you tell Kanji that it’s okay to show some small affection in the booth? He is very worried...”   
“No - I don’t wanna cause a fuss,” his blush was now becoming luminescent.   
“Aw sweetie,” Lala said kindly “There’s no need to worry here, this is a safe place, and I don’t let anyone hassle my customers - you see that neon sign over the bar? Says love is welcome here! The booths are where people go to talk in private so you two cuddle all you like. Old dried-out fogeys like me are happy to see some young love anyway.”   
“Oh uh, thank you Mrs Lala…” Kanji said sheepishly “If you say it’s alright then.”   
“He has had some **bad** experiences in the past,” Bebe said forlornly.   
“Seriously, handsome -  I know Bebe, he’s a good kid, he’s a good customer - he even helped me sew some classy new outfits for the bar,” Lala addressed Kanji “so you’re good.”   
“Thank you Madame Lala,” they both said in unison, Bebe a little more cheerful and Kanji still a little more awkward.   
“And if things get a little risqué for anyone’s tastes,” she gave him a conspiratorial wink “just tell them your boyfriend is French and doesn’t know how things work here.”   
“That is offensive!” Bebe huffed.   
“You need to take more advantage of that innocent little face of yours,” Lala simply replied “You could probably murder someone then just bat your eyelashes saying _Oh sacre bleu! I did not realize zee laws of zis land_ and they’d let you off.” She said, doing what Bebe felt was a very rude impression but Kanji felt was pretty spot on. He laughed despite himself, garnering a minorly betrayed look from the frenchman - but Bebe had to admit it was better to see him laughing than nearly crying.     
“You Kanji, not so much,” Lala continued “No offense. But having a tough aura has its own advantages - not that a shrinking violet such as myself would know of course.”   
She must have caught Ichiko making a grab for the sake again, because she quickly excused herself and hurried back down the bar.   
  
“Do you feel a little bit better, mon cheri?” Bebe asked gently.   
“Yeah, yeah I do,” Kanji tentatively put his arm around Bebe, who immediately snuggled closer to his chest. The former delinquent thought for a moment “She called you my boyfriend.”   
“Oh yes, I suppose she did,” Bebe nodded.   
“Are you…” Kanji got quiet again “ _Are_ you my boyfriend?”   
“Do you want me to be?” Bebe looked up at him calmly, taking things slow just as promised.   
“Do you wanna be?” Kanji said clumsily “Like officially?”   
“Kanji,” Bebe laughed “Is this your way of asking me to be?”

“...Maybe.”  
“Then yes,” Bebe slid over onto Kanji’s lap, looking him right in the eyes “Officially, you are now _Kareshi - le petit ami_ ”   
“Hey!” Kanji gasped at this sudden escalation, looking around nervously.   
“It is fine,” Bebe grinned cheekily “After all, I am French. _I do not know how things work here_ .”   
Kanji’s face softened as he placed a hand on the back of Bebe’s neck   
“André-chan.”   
It was now the frenchman’s turn to blush - and they both leaned in for a sweet, small kiss.


End file.
